Pub. 5 2015-2016 Issue 1

6 O V E R A C E N T U R Y : B U I L D I N G B E T T E R B A N K S - H E L P I N G C O L O R A D A N S R E A L I Z E D R E A M S A Word From CBA... Graduate School of Banking is Here to Help You Succeed It is not news to bankers that their industry is one of the fastest-changing in the world. Technology seems to jump to new levels at light speed. We are running to keep up with growing regulatory burden as new rules pile up, one on top of the other. And, hopefully, customers’ demand for our services is increasing. Those factors aren’t going to change anytime soon. So, it is important that bankers arm themselves with as much knowledge as possible, in order to thrive amid those heavy challenges. The Colorado Bankers Association in 1950 formed the Graduate School of Banking at Colorado (GSBC) to help bankers grow and prosper in their chosen field. Industry leaders have come to de- pend on the GSBC for ideas and strategies necessary to confront the challenges in a fast-paced, competitive financial environment and to realize their leadership potential. The school has educatedmore than 8,000 bankers, regulators and other members of the financial services industry. While up- holding its long-standing educational reputation, GSBC continues to adapt to the changing times and provide the premier educa- tional experience for community bankers. Its capstone program is a 25-month graduate school of banking. GSBC's Annual School Session is hosted each July and hits capacity serving just fewer than 500 students annually. Annually, the GSBC tailors its programs to alignwith bankers’ unique dynamic challenges. Class discussions, case examples and projects are targeted at issues faced by senior managers of community banks. The objective is to help provide the technical training and leadership skills for the next generation of commu- nity-bank managers. GSBC also offers the newly created Executive Development Institute for Community Banks (EDI), launched in 2014. Consid- ering the high rates of retirement and turnover for community bank executives and increased regulatory pressure to plan for the future, banks must prepare their up-and-coming leaders for managing the bank and its employees effectively. The EDI is a 19-month program which combines executive coaching, mentoring by a community bank executive with financial train- ing. I like to think of it as a finishing school for potential CEOs, coming from within your own bank – a much safer investment than the roll-of-the-dice of hiring leadership from outside the bank. What’s more, the program has proven rewarding both for the individual participants as they expand upon their leadership and personal performance, as well as for their banks. The data they use is specific to his or her institution –making their schol- arship immediately profitable for their banks As an example, one student whose bank has $200 million in assets has seen his project through the EDI add more than $120,00 to the bank's bottom line after 12 months.